Clovis grinned. "All right, kid, you've spotted the two lasers on the left arm. Those are Spitfire pulse lasers. We moved the one in the center of the Centurionto the arm, added another, and packed three heat sinks into that assembly to bleed off their added heat."

"Do I still have the laser that covers my back?"

"Still there, though it's also been upgraded to a Spitfire." Clovis pointed at the Centurion'sright arm. "We swapped out the Pontiac 100 autocannon and replaced it with a Von Ryan Rail Gun. The ammo is stored in the right side of the 'Mech's chest and the feed mechanism is all magnetic. If you lose power to the feed system and you want to lean heavily to the side, you can probably use gravity feed to pump a round into the chamber, but that's not one hundred percent."

Kai chewed on his lower lip. "Can I muzzle-load it?"

Clovis looked surprised. "Yeah, if ammo's spilling out of your side, you could muzzle-load it. It'll shoot anything that magnets can jet along, though your average girder has lousy ballistic qualities and is likely to damage the bore. Again, using non-reg ammo is only for desperate situations."

"Got it."

The dwarf clapped his hands together in a clash of metal. "The real prize is inside. We stripped the old engine out and put in an extra-light Miata 200. It'll kick out the same amount of energy you're used to, but it's lighter. We needed that weight savings because your 'Mech's been fitted with experimental myomer fibers. They are much stronger than normal—roughly triple-strength—but have some unusual properties."

Kai glanced at his father. "Are these the same ones you tricked House Liao into using? Do they still burn in the presence of a particular chemical agent?"

"No." Justin folded his arms across his chest. "That formula has been heavily modified in the past twenty years. We now have a 3X fiber that won't burn, though it has only a narrow range of operation."

Clovis continued the explanation. "What you have are muscles that only pick up their extra strength when heated. Their operational range just begins as they edge into the yellow range on your heat monitors. Below that, they're normal. In the yellow, they increase your speed and strength."

Kai frowned. "But running that warm will affect my ability to target enemies."

"It does cook the targeting circuits a bit." Clovis pointed again at the laser assembly on the left arm. "You'll find a switch in the cockpit that pulls those three heat sinks offline. That will help boost your temp almost immediately. You can shut down more to do it faster, and I'll help you rig a switch to do so if you want, but the increase in strength will be a great help if the fighting gets close and nasty."

Kai looked from Clovis to his father and Hanse Davion.

All three men grinned when they saw how overwhelmed he was. "I don't know what to say. You made these modifications just for me?"

Justin shrugged. "More or less. Clovis wanted to show off the triple myomer, and because of Yen-lo-wang'sdays on Solaris, it had all the diagnostic circuitry already built. When you passed up an Omni in favor of Yen-lo-wang,the Prince ordered the other modifications."

Hanse nodded. "Because you deserve the best 'Mech possible when out there and because you're in my son's command. Victor gets reckless, and even though Hauptmann Cox does an excellent job keeping an eye on him, I want someone else out there I can trust with his life."

"Kai Allard-Liao is a wise choice for that job, Prince Davion."

Kai spun at the sound of another man's voice behind them, his hands reflexively coming up into a position to fend off an attack and deliver a counterstrike. He forced them down and bowed. "Konnichiwa,Gunji-no-Kanrei."

Theodore Kurita solemnly returned the bow. "And to you, Leftenant. My agents have reported the nature of your new 'Mech and I envy you."

Hanse's blue eyes narrowed. "Is there something I can do for you, Theodore?"

The Kanrei reached into a pocket of his robe and withdrew a sheet of paper. "I thought, Hanse, that you would be interested in the news that the Clans have begun their return." He handed the sheet to Justin. "This is a condensed version of the message my ship sent this morning. It's not literal enough to let you crack our code, but it contains all the necessary data. The Clans have elected a new ilKhan. He is apparently the leader of the Wolves. As they have been the most militarily successful Clan thus far, I suspect this means the war will now resume."

Hanse looked at Justin. "Confirm or deny?"

"I can do neither, Highness. Our agents on the border worlds report no attacks. And agents we may or may not have on the occupied worlds have not been able to report to us. I do not know if they are still alive, or if ComStar is merely holding up their communications. Neither have our ships probing the territories had time to report back in any great detail."

Hanse's lips formed a grim line. "This is sooner than I would have hoped. It will take another year for Thomas Marik to bring his factories online with total production."

Theodore nodded. "I have taken the step of ordering a number of factories to turn out field modification packages. As we repair and refit, we can use new components to rebuild our 'Mechs."

"Agreed." Hanse gave Theodore a grin that reminded Kai of Hanse's longtime nickname of "the Fox."

"My compliments to your spy for getting you the information so soon."

The Kanrei returned the grin. "I will communicate your praise to our network. We believe the assaults will begin again by October's end. That gives us six weeks to prepare our defenses."

"I don't suppose this new ilKhan would favor giving us more time." Hanse rested his hands on his hips. "Again, thank you for letting me know about this."

"There is another matter we should discuss," Theodore said quietly. "It concerns Victor and Omi." Hanse looked at Clovis and Kai, but Theodore indicated with a wave of the hand that they might remain. "According to ISF files, Clovis Holstein can be trusted with a secret, and Kai is already aware of the situation. In fact, the reason I come to speak to you is because of something he said to my son."

Clovis cracked a grin. "The easiest way to keep a secret is to not know it. Gotta go anyway. Promised my wife I'd meet her fifteen minutes ago."

Hanse dismissed Clovis with a nod, then shook his head in mild disbelief. "Your daughter and my son becoming friends. Who would have believed it?"

"Shakespeare?" Justin offered casually.

Everyone laughed briefly, then sobered as their initial embarrassment wore off. "I have spoken with Omi about her friendship with your son. Apparently, they are only friends, not yet lovers. She has obediently offered to break off all communication with Victor and to atone for any dishonor her actions may have brought to House Kurita."

Theodore's blue eyes flicked at Kai. "That is exactly what I would have required if Hohiro had not told me of his conversation with Kai. Kai believes that my daughter and your son offer one another an otherwise nonexistent opportunity of spending time with a peer. It is true that they cannot simply be themselves with most people they encounter. I managed it, but only because my father all but disowned me. That freed me to meet a woman with whom I fell deeply in love."

Hanse's eyes focused distantly and a smile tugged at his lips, then he returned just as swiftly to the here and now. "Though I gained my bride in different circumstances, I have found with her a deep union beyond title or bloodline. There were thousands of women more than willing to bear Davion heirs, but only one I wanted."